These Are The Days
by ElectricRodeo
Summary: Stephanie's world is turned upside down, and she makes a run to the last place you would expect.
1. Prologue

(Present)

Connie and Lula were gathered in the office, like usual on a Monday. Ranger was also in the office, and Lula was trying to sweet talk him into taking her homicidal skip. Ranger had a stack of his own, and didn't really want the low dollar skip Lula had. But he didn't want Lula killed either. That would mean he'd either have to train another agent or take the cases himself.

He took the file. _It was one of Stephanie's regulars_, he though. _Used to be _he corrected himself. "I don't need you killed." He said, took the skip and made a move to the door.

From down the street, sounds of loud music came through the door. This was usual for this area, for kids to drive down the street playing their rap at the top of the volume. But as the sounds got closer, it wasn't rap. The sound of a steel guitar and a the twang of a female western singer got closer and closer.

There was the squealing of tires, then the music got turned off. For a few brief seconds, the sound of a 8-cylinder engine chugging could be heard before the driver cut the engine. Connie got out of her chair and opened the door a crack to see the new business.

She closed the door and turned to Ranger and Lula with a smile. "She's back"

* * *

I know you probably want to shoot me because the chapter's too short and you don't know what's going on. I promise all the other's will be much longer and more informative. I didn't want to add anything else to this one or I'd risk losing the edge I might have with it.

But, I uploaded two other chapters, so the story's not done! I hope I did good, since this is my first fic.


	2. Past 1

(1 year in the past)

_He should have called by now. He said he'd call. He hasn't called yet. Why hasn't he called. Maybe I'll call him. No, don't call him. He would have called if he wasn't busy, and he hasn't called so he must be busy. _

_Or maybe he forgot. He could have just forgotten. He's human, humans forget to call their girlfriends after they go out on a scary drug bust with homicidal people with guns and bullets and stuff. _

I was officially freaking out. Joe should have called by now. Joe **would** have called by now.

This internal battle with myself is not making things much easier. Joe would be alright. He'd be fine enough for me to kick his ass when I finally saw him.

This is what happens when you have a cop boyfriend. They have to go on drug busts, with bad guys and guns. That's why he has a partner, anyway. To protect him against the bad guys and their guns. So why am I worried?

"I'm worried because I care for him. He might be my husband one day." I said aloud.

So I dialed his cell number. No answer. Okay, not good. _But I would have gotten a call from the hospital if something bad happened, so he's fine. He's probably still busy and cant answer his phone._

I sat in the silence for a moment, then realized it was silent. Rex was still at Joe's house. And I currently wasn't. And the quiet was nerve racking. I slipped into a pair of shoes and hustled to my car. I turned on the radio softly so that there wasn't any quiet.

Odd things started once I pulled onto Joe's street. I couldn't place the cause to the feelings, but the feelings that screamed "TURN BACK NOW!" were around.

Joe's truck was parked on the sidewalk in front of his house. I sighed. Good sign. I parked and jogged up the front walk. I slid my key into the lock, excited to see him. I practically threw the door off it's hinges when I opened it. Then I noticed the bra. Actually, there was a trail of clothing, but the bra stood out. Joe didn't wear a bra, and I didn't own that bra. Looking at the clothing pile, I realized that I didn't own any of these clothes. A shirt and pants that belonged to Morelli, an additional pair that would have fit a woman much smaller than me, with much bigger boobs.

I fished a phone out of the back pocket of Joe's pants. I wanted to know the identity of the woman screwing my boyfriend before I met her face to face. And I had already checked the woman's pants.

_One missed call. _The phone told me. I accessed the recent calls menu. One missed from Stephanie. One to the station. Three from one Teri Gillman. One to Teri.

Rumors had been floating around that Joe was having an affair with Teri. Whenever I brought it up however, he countered it with a buyable excuse. That I believed, every single time. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I resisted the urge to smash my head into the wall.

_Now what do I do? _I asked myself, standing in the middle of his living room. I came to get Rex, nothing else. Okay, so I did want to see Joe, but those thoughts had ended. _Holler for him. Curse him out in front of his lover. _That's irrational, I told self. I made a big scene with Dickie, my ex-husband, for this exact thing. No need for round two. _Take Rex and leave him a note. _That made sense. I searched for a pencil and a piece of paper. I managed to dig up an old take-out bag and a magic marker.

"Dear Joe," I began. "I didn't want to ruin your evening, but I will be needing my things back. I will come back tomorrow and get my stuff then leave the key." I swallowed back tears.

"Please feel free to keep Bob as long as you like. I'll understand if you want to keep him, or if you want me to take him. Lastly, I'm pretty sure you're uninvited to dinner tomorrow night." A tear slid down my cheek as I finished punctuating the last sentence. _Do what has to be done._ This was harder than it looked.

"Sincerely, Stephanie." I ended, and sighed. I picked up Rex's cage and placed the note in it's place. Joe would see it: Rex was placed on the counter-bar thing right beside the coffee maker so that we wouldn't forget to feed him.

I had a sudden rush of emotion as I passed the strewn clothing in the hall. I pulled Rex's cage close to me to find comfort. I eased out of my parking place and headed to the local 7-Eleven. Nobody made a better companion than Ben and Jerry. I picked three flavors because I couldn't choose. I returned home at a quarter to twelve. I sat up for two hours working on my ice cream. I ate till I could eat no more. I slipped into a battered flannel button up and a ratted pair of sweatpants. I went to check the door one last time, and ran face to face with Ranger, who was once again letting himself into my apartment.

This was usual, in an unusual sort of way. Ranger made it a hobby to break in at odd hours of the night. I think he did it more often than I knew of, just watching me sleep. Or just making sure I slept another night without bad guys stabbing me in my sleep. They also made it a hobby to break in. Ranger and I have been friends for the better of three years now, and I still hardly know nothing about him. Just that he's a successful businessman, of sorts, he's ex-military, and has a daughter, 4 sisters and a brother.

"Hey." I said.

He was silent. He took in the orphan Annie look I was wearing, then to the bowl of mostly gone, melted ice cream. "Rough night?"

"You could say that." I responded.

Ranger made is way to the couch and looked at me expectantly. I waddled over to the couch too. "Care to talk about it?" Ranger asked.

I gave him a twisted look from where I sat. Ranger was actually prodding. Not into my love life, for once, but just into my personal life. That sort of rolled over into my love life in a non-direct way. "Not really, but by morning it will have made the paper."

I took a breath and let it out before I continued. "Joe's doing the nasty with Teri Gillman. He might not be doing it now, but two hours ago when he was supposed to be on a big drug bust, he was at home boinking Teri. I went to get Rex and…" I stopped short of the rest.

Ranger slid his arm across my back to my opposite shoulder. "Babe." He gave a squeeze.

Suddenly, I felt lonely. A feeling of guilt overcame me, and thoughts of being alone for the rest of my life clouded my every thought. I glanced at Ranger, who was watching me. I nuzzled into his chest as I felt the first of many tears slide down my cheek. He reached up with his hand and swiped a few, but more took it's place. He kissed the top of my head.

We said nothing for a few long minutes. Then, I couldn't hold back my question. "What are you doing here?" I asked him innocently.

"I knew something happened with Morelli. I tracked your car, and his still has the tracker from when you drove it. It was parked for a long time, and yours wasn't. Figured something was up."

"And you came to my rescue?"

"Just like Batman." He retorted with a smile.

I couldn't resist. It was a line I had cooked up a long time ago, from when Ranger harassed a little old lady to find where I was in the middle of the night after he'd been gone all day to save me. I said it to myself over and over again, in reference to the many times he had saved my ass, and to the future when he would save my ass. "You're my Batman."

I spared a look at him, and he leaned over for a kiss. The kiss was quick and sweet. Then his lips broke into a smile. "I'm your Batman." He replied.

_Too bad Batman doesn't have superpowers._ I thought, but must have said out loud because he responded with, "Wouldn't be too sure about that."

* * *

This one's much longer. Not quite as long as I'd planned, and I kind of cut the ending short (and cheesy). Oh well, that happens sometimes. I promise more to come, but I have to go to bed or I won't wake up in the morning. I'm sorry I didn't quite get down to the plot just yet. but I really gotta go! 


	3. Past 2

(Still 1 year in the past.)

I sighed. He was still asleep. I sighed again, and stuffed the last of my necessities in a bag. I didn't know where I was going, just that I had to go. Ranger's form twisted a little, and I decided I needed to leave now, or never.

I threw my duffel bag of essentials in the seat next to me of my beat up old truck. It was a Chevy, but barely recognizable. It was on sale for $300 and it had run well for two weeks, so it was a decent deal. I had expected it to have blown up already though. I secured Rex's cage beside me, turned the radio on to calm my head.

And I drove off into the sunrise.

* * *

To tell you the truth, I didn't know where I was. All I knew was, at this moment in time, I couldn't go any farther. I was sitting in the lobby of a small town auto shop, waiting to hear the news on my truck. It had began to make chugging noises about an hour or so, and managed to roll to the town boundary then stop. I had to walk into town and find a tow truck.

The mechanic came out and wiped his hands on a greasy rag. "That truck is toast." He stated in a thick country accent

"What do ya mean toast?" I said.

"Toast, lady. I don't know where you're going, but I know you aren't getting there today. The engine's so busted, it would cost less to buy a new truck." He said sympathetically. "You aren't from around here. Pennsylvania?" He asked.

"Jersey." I said, a little disappointed. I didn't know where I was going, but I wasn't planning for here.

"Well Jersey, tell you what. Let me treat you to lunch, since you don't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon."

I had to think. I didn't really want to go to lunch, with the mechanic or with anyone. But he was right. I had no where to go. "I don't usually eat lunch with strangers, at least until I know their name." I said.

The mechanic looked at his jumpsuit, and fingered the breast where his nametag should have been. "Right. Forgot about that. Sorry." He stuck his hand out. "Slade. Slade McCormick."

I shook his hand. "Stephanie Plum."

"Well Stephanie, I know of a great burger joint just down the street. You like burgers?" Slade asked, and zippered himself out of the jumpsuit. Underneath, he wore a button down flannel shirt that was tucked into a pair of excellent fitting jeans.

"Throw in greasy fries and a thick milkshake and I'm in." This got Slade to smile.

"It's just a five minute walk from here. You mind?" He asked.

"Is it nice outside?" I asked. When I had been outside, I hadn't noticed what the weather was. I was more concerned about my car.

"It's on the warmer side. But, there's a breeze and with the trees, it's pretty nice." Slade explained, as he pushed the door open. He was right.

The street that the auto shop was long. It must have been the main street, or one of the main streets, because you could see shops in every direction. We walked in silence down the street, and Slade pulled me into the alley way. He climbed up the back wall, and sat at the top. "This is the quickest way there." He explained, and held out a hand to help me up.

"Won't they get mad at you?" I asked, and managed to climb the wall.

I balanced myself on the top, but felt myself teetering. Best hurry and get off this thing. As if I had said it aloud, Slade jumped down. I went to pull my other leg over the wall, and undistributed my weight. This set off an imbalance of my insides, and I teetered off the wall.

Lucky for me, Slade had been in the process of giving me a hand, and I fell on him. My sudden falling caused the two of us to go down, me falling on top of him. He looked pained, and I quickly rolled off of him. "I'm sorry. I usually don't do that the first day I've met a person."

He smiled and in a cat-like move, pulled himself to his feet. He dusted himself off and continued on his way. "As I was about to say earlier, this town's so small everyone knows everyone else. I grew up next to Mr. and Mrs. Grubber. They were always the ones who would find me getting into trouble and not tell my father."

I continued in silence. I wouldn't mind living in a town where everyone knew everyone. In Trenton there was a little of that, but mostly from the gossip mill and such.

The restaurant wasn't overly crowded, and the food smelled out of this world. Slade chose a table in the far corner, away from the other patrons. A waitress ambled over, introduced herself as Marianne. Slade asked her a few questions about her husband and kids, then proceeded to give our drink order.

The menu was simple. Burger and fries. You got a choice of cheese or without, normal or sesame seed bun, and if you wanted two meat patties instead of one. Marianne came back with our drinks, slipped an envelope to Slade and took our order. With the promise of being back in a few minutes, she left to attend to the other customers.

"So, Jersey, where are you headed?" He asked casually.

I sighed again. "I don't know."

* * *

Again somewhat of a weak ending, but again it is past time for me to be in bed. Now that you mention it, I should have done something embarrassing with Joe's clothing, but it didn't come to me in time. I am probably going to jump to and from different points in the past (we will get back to the Ranger thing, I promise.) I'll try to tell you with my little parenthesis time-notes, but plan on being mildly confused until the end of the story. 


	4. Past 3

(Again, still in the past.)

Slade stared at me over his folded hands. "Repairs are going to cost about five thousand dollars. That piece of rusted metal is only worth a thousand, if you're lucky. And that's not counting all the other repairs that should be made, or will need to be made later."

"And what does that mean?" I asked.

"That means, Jersey, that you don't have a ride." Slade stated simply.

"Damn." I said under my breath and he laughed.

"Yup." He said, and swiveled in his chair a little. He had brought me into his office after our awesome lunch. We were now talking cars, a subject I knew little about.

"Seems you're going to be stuck in town tonight. Springer is just 50 miles from here, a good half hour drive. I can take you tomorrow, if you'd like." Slade explained.

"Double damn." I muttered.

"Could be worse, Jersey. You could actually have somewhere to be." Slade joked. I scowled at him.

"Where's the nearest hotel?" I asked.

"Only one hotel in Grant. To tell you the truth, it's a pretty run down place. Everyone's lost interest in it. If it's a bed and hot shower you want, I have an extra room at my place."

Bells went off. Bad idea. My hormones were out of whack. One man broke his love, another professed his love, and now I was about to shack up with a cowboy.

"If it makes you feel any better, it's a huge house I inherited from my father. You don't even have to see me if you want too." He said.

"It's a great offer, but I really shouldn't." I said.

"Back to those issues?" He asked.

During lunch, he had started asking me questions. What was I doing here? Why did I leave? I just told him I had issues to sort out.

"Back to my issues." I agreed.

"How about I tell you a secret?" He leaned in. "I'm not going to touch you. Not that you're not attractive or anything, but I'm not really in to you." He blushed embarrassed, like there was more to tell.

"You have a crush on someone, don't you?" I said.

He laughed and blushed again. "Geez. You make me sound like I'm a horny teenager. Yes, I have a crush, and it's not you Jersey. Sorry. Feel any better now?"

You could tell by the way he was acting that he was seriously embarrassed to have shared his deepest darkest secret with me. And I believed him. "I guess so."

He smiled, got up and lead me back out to the lobby. "I have a little work to finish, then I'll be ready to go. Why don't you go across the street and look at some of the shops? Could do you some good to meet the locals. You might be here a while."

I walked into a little hobby shop across the way from the auto shop. There were kits for little toy planes, and model cars and quilting supplies. Everything you could imagine, packed into the little shop. I browsed up and down the isles, looking at everything.

_You don't have a hobby. You had to lie about playing the Cello! _I screamed at myself. This bummed me out even more. I watched a little boy grab a model rocket kit and join his dad, who had several model making supplies in his hand.

Slade came to my rescue, poking his head into the store and telling me to move it or he'd leave me alone.

* * *

Slade kept to his word. We entered the house, he showed me where everything was, nuked up a bowl of chicken noodle for each of us, and then took his soup down the hall towards his room. I followed suit, eating my soup as fast as I could so I could hide underneath the sheets.

I turned out the light, and suddenly realized just how much I missed home already. _Pull it together, Plum. If you're going to make it out here on your own, you're going to have to live without home!_ I sternly told myself.

But that didn't stop me from crying myself to sleep.

* * *

I promise the Ranger deal is next. I was planning to do it now, but I can't find the right words to make it happen. So I'm going to go talk to myself for a little bit, and the words will come. 


	5. Past 4

(Jumps to the past, the night Ranger showed up..)

"Babe, I need to talk to you." Ranger said in a tone that caught my attention.

"What's up?" I twisted on the couch. I sat with my knees pulled to my chest cradling a gallon of ice cream. I twisted so that my back was to the arm rest and I could face him.

He closed his eyes, looked down at his shoes, then at me. "I need to do this now, or I might lose you again."

He paused again, and looked back at his shoes. I didn't get what he was saying. "Ranger, what'd ya…."

"Every time I get close to you, you have some issue with Morelli. You love him, but you're not in love with him, and everyone can see that. Every time I almost work up the courage to start something, I'm to late."

There was another pregnant pause. I wasn't quite sure what to say. This wasn't the Ranger I had become accustomed to. "Ranger…"

He broke me off again. "I don't do relationships well. The skills they taught me in the rangers made me hard headed, not trusting, and a bad ass. After my divorce, I shielded my heart with walls of iron because I couldn't handle trusting someone the way I trusted her and then have them reject me the way she did."

"But damn it Babe, you're making my walls fall over as if they were made of sticks." He looked at me again.

I unfolded my knees and leaned against him. He was trying. It became suddenly apparent that this was fairly new to him.

"I… I…" He started. "Shit. I love you."

I looked at him. He looked at me. He was waiting for the words. Three little words that I had not spoken to another human being since my divorce from Dickie. "Ranger, I can't…" I said.

The emotion in his eyes changed. He closed his eyes for a long second then pulled in for a kiss. It was long and slow and sweet. "I know." He breathed when he pulled back.

I looked him in the eye again, and he met my glaze with one of his own. He dipped his head again, his eyes following mine, almost asking permission. I tipped my head slightly. This time the kiss was faster, harder. His hand traced down my arm, then over my belly then under my shirt. My skin felt like it was on fire.

I stood up, and pulled him off the couch by the collar of his shirt. He followed willingly. We crashed onto my bed. Ranger kicked off his shoes and pushed me under him, ravishing my mouth with his. Then he pulled back. "We can't do this." He said and gave me a once over.

Some point during our travels, I had lost my shirt. He had been working on my jeans, but had only managed to get my button undone. "We shouldn't." I added.

I wanted to. My body ached for him to touch me again. But I couldn't. Ranger up righted himself and smoothed out his shirt. He glanced at the bed. He suddenly looked so exhausted he could fall over at any minute. "I could use some company." I said sweetly.

He nodded. I retrieved my shirt, and he took off his. We both climbed into bed. I rolled onto my stomach, and Ranger laid his hand across my back protectively. He planted a kiss to the part of my neck that was exposed when my hair was pulled to one side. "Night." I mumbled into the pillow.

He said nothing, but I felt his body relax. In moments, the two of us, were asleep.

* * *

Not quite what I planned but good enough. I didn't want to break my stride, so I sat at my computer and just started typing. One of these days, I'll have the patience to sit down and write a really long chapter. Maybe on the weekend or something. 


End file.
